You better, you better, you bet
by Antigone Sycamore
Summary: No one had ever said her name like Will. Post Willie Pete.


No one had ever said her name like Will. Post One Step Too Many.

Disclaimer: I don't own The Newsroom or the song.

Thanks especially to lazysunday30 for the help with the story.

Rated K+

You better, you better, you bet

Part of what made MacKenzie fall in love with him was his voice. From the first time he had talked to her, she had always, always loved his voice. It was like sandpaper rubbing over smooth wood. It was like a rising tide washing over a rocky beach. It was like….it was like nothing else. It too was part of what made him an exceptional anchor.

Sometimes, for just a few seconds she allowed herself to close her eyes in the shimmering darkness of the control room and get lost in his voice. Even when he was on air talking about domestic politics and the news of the day, it was just a little too easy to remember what that voice sounded like when it whispered sweet nothings or reassuring pacifications in her ear. When it breathed her name. She shivered at the memory, the small hairs on the back of her neck standing up. There had been little she could deny Will McAvoy in the moments his rough, deep voice had moaned her name in the darkness of his apartment.

No one had ever said her name like Will.

But that was a long time ago. The same rough voice informed her now matter-of-factly that he had been dating Nina Howard for the last months and that he was planning on bringing her to Hang Chew's tonight. He had intercepted her after the show in the cold blue light of the hallway leading to the control room, with his hands deep into his pockets and an unreadable look on his face. People curiously passed them by as she stood across from him, arms defensively placed over her chest.

"Look, I want you to know that I am not doing this to hurt you." This time, the softness of his voice did nothing to alleviate the impact of his harsh words.

MacKenzie's head began to swirl as she fought for control. Ever since his 'you-are-not-as-cute-as-you-think' speech a few weeks ago she had been tiptoeing around him on egg shells. She could handle a grumpy Will. She could handle him having revenge sex with cheerleaders just to get back at her. She could handle him dating random crazy women with a Walther PPK in their clutch just to drive her out of her fucking mind. She could handle him being mad as hell at her and not for a second forgetting about it. She could handle him not telling her what the erased voicemail message said. For now, she could even handle him not ever forgiving her for the worst thing she had ever done in her entire live. But after all these month she had so badly wished, she had so _badly_ _hoped_ that he would come around, she certainly could not handle him developing genuine feelings for Nina Howard.

For a second she doesn't know whether to cry or to yell at him. Then it occurs to her that she's long lost any rightful claim she might once have had on Will McAvoy. So she clenches her fists and raises her head in defiance, fighting back the tears she knows are coming. It is an involuntary reaction - her body trying to regain composure. Besides, there doesn't seem to be any other legitimate options.

She could make a scene in the middle of the bullpen like a bitchy old housewife that had just been cheated on and dumped by her bored husband. The irony is not lost on her and the thought suddenly makes her laugh. A short, high-pitched laugh that immediately betrays the sinking feeling of panic that starts to build deep down in her stomach. As she breaks eye contact with him, one of her hands flies to her mouth to stop it from emitting any other involuntary sounds. She wonders if this is what Will felt like when she told him she had cheated on him with Brian. If it is in fact the same sort of feeling, she should never be forgiven. The difference here is _she_ hadn't been cheated on. Because she _isn't_ with Will. It's as if she has to spell it out for herself to convince her own brain that he _hasn't_ cheated on her. She can tell it isn't working. Her brain is not buying it.

"MacKenzie…" Even though she knows it's genuine, she hates the concern and the pity she hears in the soft humming of his voice. He is trying to calm her. When she first told Will about Brian, he didn't make a scene. He didn't even yell at her. He just listened as she cried her apologies and then he got up. She was desperate for him to say something. Say anything. Just to hear his voice. Just to hear the deep humming she had come to love. Instead, for a split second as he walked past her on his way out of the room, she was convinced that he was going to hit her. She could see it in his eyes, the rage and the danger as he fought for control. And God knows, he knew it too.

She still doesn't know how to respond to this bold statement of his that is supposed to….reassure her? Prepare her? So she just stares back at him thinking hard for something appropriate to say. Between her constant awareness of Will, Maggie's terrible trip to Uganda and the Genoa incident, MacKenzie has a lot of things on her radar right now and it completely eludes her, how the events that unfolded in the past month led to this very moment in her life. How did she miss his sudden interest in Nina Howard?

Will's blue eyes still stare at her. Waiting. As she presses her lips tightly together she forces herself to nod. There is nothing else she can say or do right now.

It is enough for him. He squeezes her shoulder quickly as he walks past her to the bullpen.

"Will-" She blurts out his name as he is halfway through the door. It sounds like a cry for help, her begging him not to leave her alone in the dark, and he swirls around at the sound of her voice.

"I'm sorry that I never called you back," she says. Even though she hasn't brought up the voicemail message in weeks, he immediately knows what she is talking about. "You never got the message." There's the soft humming in his voice again, stating the obvious.

"I know. But now I've got Roger Daltrey screaming, "You better, you better, you bet" in my ear."

_You better bet your life__  
__Or love will cut you, just like a knife_


End file.
